


Code

by krazikrys



Category: Backstreet Boys
Genre: Hospitalization, Medical, Medical Procedures, Medical Trauma, Near Death, Unconsciousness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-19
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2020-05-14 14:51:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19275550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/krazikrys/pseuds/krazikrys
Summary: Brian Littrell is found unconscious by his wife and rushed to the hospital. On his nightstand is a note with a phone number saying to call if something happens. The woman on the other end of the line rushes to be by the family's side, but who is she? How does she know Brian? Why does he have her number?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know where this fic came from. But it obviously needs to be written. Just grab the tissues now, okay?
> 
> I don't know them. I've never met them. Okay, I have met Baylee and Leighanne. But this is fiction, okay? No harm meant!

It was about eight-thirty at night. Normally Leighanne and her husband Brian were up until at least ten, if not later. But that night, Brian had said he wasn’t feeling well and headed to bed early. She climbed the stairs and headed to their room. Pushing open the door, she saw her husband laying on his side on the floor next to their bed. She screamed and ran to his side. 

Their son, Baylee, came sprinting into the room. “Mom, what’s wrong?”

“Call nine one one!” she screamed.

Baylee didn’t hesitate but grabbed his cell phone out of his back pocket and dialed.

Leighanne didn’t hear what her son was saying on the phone. Instead, she had her face next to her husband, feeling his shallow breaths on her skin. She didn’t hear the paramedics arrive and only moved when one of them pulled her off of Brian.

Baylee held her back as the two paramedics worked on Brian and strapped him to a backboard. “We’re taking him to Piedmont,” one of them said as they carried Brian out and down the stairs. Leighanne stared but didn’t really see what had happened. 

After a moment, Baylee nudged his mom. “Mom. We need to follow the ambulance.”

Leighanne shook herself and stared at her son. “Just a sec, Bay. Lemme get your dad’s phone.” Her voice was distant. She walked over to the nightstand and reached for her husband’s cell phone. Right next to it was a napkin with a phone number scrawled on it. At first, Leighanne thought nothing of it until she saw her husband’s handwriting above it. It said, “If something happens, call…” The name on the napkin said “Bec” and was an Atlanta number. Without thinking, she used her husband’s phone and dialed the number she saw.

As the phone rang, she hurried down the stairs and grabbed her keys from the table by the door. Baylee was right behind her. She reached the car and fumbled with the keys. Finally getting the key in the ignition, the car started and the Bluetooth connected right as a woman answered the other end. “Hello?” came the voice through the speaker in the car. 

Leighanne froze. She was about to put the car into gear but hearing the voice stopped her. “Hello?” she responded. “Is this Bec?”

“It is,” said the voice. “Who’s this?”

“This is Leighanne Littrell. I found your number on a napkin.”

The voice on the other end became more panicked. “Did something happen to Brian?”

Leighanne’s voice caught in her throat. She couldn’t answer.

“Mom found him unconscious. He’s on his way to the hospital. We’re headed there now,” Baylee added from the front seat.

“What hospital?” the woman asked.

“Piedmont,” Baylee stated as his mom slowly put the car into gear.

“Go to the ER entrance. I’ll meet you there,” the woman said and hung up.

Baylee glanced at his mom as she backed out of the driveway and headed towards the hospital. “Do you want me to start calling the family?” he asked.

Leighanne stared at the road. “Start with the guys,” she stated.

“Why?”

Leighanne glanced at her son. “They’re farthest away. And management needs to know.” She rolled to a stop at a stoplight. “Remember, we are in the public eye all the time, Bay. If Tony hasn’t gotten a call yet, he will. Oh, and keep this off social media right now. If we’re gonna release anything it’s gonna be together.” Baylee nodded.

They continued to the hospital in silence until the teenager couldn't take it anymore. “Mom, is Dad gonna be okay?”

“I don’t know, Son,” Leighanne answered truthfully.

“Who was that woman you called?”

Leighanne shook her head. “I don’t know. Obviously a friend of your father’s.”

“But I thought you knew all of Dad’s friends.”

Leighanne shrugged as they pulled into the parking lot at the hospital. “Obviously it’s someone new. But she said she’d meet us here. So we’ll find out.” The drive seemed to take forever. Leighanne heard Baylee on the phone with his “uncles.” She was glad he had started with Kevin. Kevin was family. He’d start calling relatives. By the time they reached the hospital and she circled the parking lot for a space and finally found one, Baylee had managed to get in touch with the other four members of the band. Howie had apparently agreed to call Tony. They all said they were going to catch flights to Atlanta and would likely be there the next day.

Leighanne climbed out of the car with her son trailing her, still on the phone with one of the family members who had called. She walked in through the sliding doors of the emergency room and stopped in her tracks. She looked around not knowing what to do or who to speak to. As she stood there, a brunette woman came up to her. “Leighanne?” she asked. Leighanne stared at her. Nothing was registering. Her voice didn’t want to work. Slowly she nodded her head. “I’m Bec. Let’s go find out what’s going on with Brian, okay?” Leighanne nodded again. The woman gently placed her hand on Leighanne’s back, supporting her as she led her to the desk. “Brian Littrell was brought in by ambulance not too long ago,” she told the receptionist.

The woman in blue scrubs looked up at the two women and the teenager behind them. “And you are?”

“This is his wife. I’m her sister and this is their son,” Bec told the woman.

Nodding, the woman started typing on the keyboard in front of her. Without saying anything, she said into a small button on her shirt, “Can I get an orderly to ER reception please?” She then looked at the three people in front of her. “Someone will be with you shortly.”

No one had a chance to move before the doors beside the desk opened and a young man with brown hair also wearing blue scrubs came out. “Are you with Mister Littrell?” he asked. Everyone nodded. “Let me take you to a separate waiting room.”

Leighanne glanced at the woman beside her. “It’s okay,” she said. “He’s in a bay. They obviously don’t want us with those who are coming in for other reasons.” Leighanne nodded and followed the man down a short hall to a small waiting room.

“The doctor will be out to talk to you shortly,” the man said.

Everyone nodded and Bec led Leighanne to the first set of dark blue chairs against the wall. “Shortly could mean a few minutes or a very long time,” she said softly, sitting next to Brian’s wife.

Baylee touched the brunette woman’s shoulder. “How do you know so much?”

She smiled faintly. “I’ve been in this position way too much lately.” Leaning over, she laid her hand on Leighanne’s knee. “I know it’s late, but do you want anything?” Leighanne shook her head. “I know of a vending machine around the corner. I’ll be right back with some water, okay?” Leighanne barely nodded. She stared at the same spot on the ground in front of her. 

Bec walked out of the small waiting room and within three minutes was back with three bottled waters. Right as she entered the room, there was a voice over the loudspeaker. “Code Blue, ER bay two. Code Blue, ER bay two.”

Leighanne froze and stared at the door. Dropping into the seat next to her, Bec said, “You don’t know that it’s him. You’re gonna hear a lot of codes. Until you know where he is, you just don’t know.” Leighanne continued to stare at the door to the hallway as a second code was called for bay three. Bec reached over and handed her a water bottle, which she took and held in her hand.

It was nearly one in the morning when someone entered the room. Baylee had curled up in a chair and fallen asleep. Leighanne was still sitting in the same chair she had been with Bec beside her. The person who had entered the room was a young looking man in green scrubs. He stopped and looked at the three people there. “Misses Littrell?” he asked.

Leighanne went to stand up but Bec placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s probably better if you stay seated right now.”

The man came over and sat beside Leighanne. “I’m Doctor Levingston. I’ve been treating your husband tonight.” Bec reached over and grabbed Leighanne’s hand. “He’s currently stable. We’re going to be moving him to a room in ICU within the hour. We don’t know why he lost consciousness. But we’ve called in a cardiologist. Did your husband have open heart surgery?”

Leighanne glanced over at Bec. “He was twenty-three,” she whispered.

The doctor nodded. “Okay. That’s good to know. I’ll pass that information along to the cardiologist. We’ll have someone come and get you when he’s moved to ICU.” 

Doctor Levingston stood up and Bec did as well. She followed him out into the hallway. “Doctor Levingston,” she said. The young doctor turned around. “Did he code?”

The doctor stared at the woman for a moment. “He did. But we got him back. He’s on full support right now. Sedated but stable. He’s a fighter. He’s already starting to fight his settings.”

Bec nodded and said, “Thank you.” She then turned around and headed back into the waiting room.


	2. Chapter 2

An hour after the doctor had stopped by, a nurse entered the room. “Is this the family of Brian Littrell?” she asked. 

Leighanne looked up but didn’t say anything. Bec answered for her, “Yes.”

“We’ve moved him into a private room in the ICU if you’d like to come and see him.”

Bec stood up and walked over to where Baylee was sleeping and shook him gently, telling him that they had gotten his father in a room. Baylee jumped out of the chair and went to stand next to his mother. The trio followed the nurse out of the room and down a hall.

“Visiting hours are from seven in the morning to nine at night,” she said as they turned a corner and walked down another hall. “We generally allow only two people at a time. Because of his status, he is in a private room.” They walked by a small waiting room. “This is a waiting room you can use if there are more family to see him. Also if we are doing something that may be difficult, we may ask you to leave. You can wait here and we’ll come get you when we are finished.” They stopped outside a set of double doors. “This is the entrance to the ICU. Just press the button here on the wall and you’ll be connected to the nurses' station. Tell them who you’re here to see and they’ll let you in.” The blonde nurse did exactly as she explained and told the nurse at the station who she was bringing in. The doors opened inward and the four people walked into a hallway with glass walls and doors on the outside edge. All the rooms were dark. The only way anyone could tell that they were occupied was by the hums and beeps and the light from the monitors.

The nurse led them to a door in the middle of the large wing. “He’s right off the station so we can keep an eye on him,” she said. “Would you like to go in and see him for a few?”

Leighanne looked at Bec. Her eyes were wide with fear. “Would you like me to go in first?” Bec whispered softly. Leighanne nodded slowly and Bec turned and headed for the glass door. Taking a breath, she walked into the semi-dark room. The sounds were what hit her first. The rhythmic hum of the ventilator. The steady beeping of the monitor. She glanced at the bed. Brian was there, underneath what appeared to be dozens of wires and tubes. He had a light blanket on his body and his hands were out by his sides. He was still, unmoving. Slowly, she walked over to the side of the bed and grabbed his hand. “Brian,” she said softly. “I know you can hear me. You scared your family to death. You stop this now. You fight. You get better. They need you.” She felt his finger twitch against her hand. “I knew you were listening. I’m gonna go get Leighanne. Don’t do anything stupid, okay?” His pinky twitched in her hand again.

Slowly she let go of his hand and walked out of the darkened room. Looking at Brian’s wife and son standing next to each other, she sighed. This was going to be very difficult. Bec stepped in front of Leighanne and grabbed both her hands. “Okay, listen to me. I know you are gonna want to cry when you see him but don’t. If you want to cry, scream, yell, it doesn’t happen in that room. Do it in the car, the shower, the hotel, anywhere but in there. He needs all the positivity and love you can pour out on him. He needs your strength. I know it’s gonna be scary, but be brave. Hold his hand. Talk to him. He’s sedated but he does respond, it’s just slight.” Leighanne nodded slowly. “Do you want me to go in there with you?” Leighanne nodded again.

Bec looked over at Baylee. Releasing one of Leighanne’s hands, she grabbed his. “I don’t know if you want to see your dad like this, Baylee,” she said softly. Leighanne placed her free hand on her son’s shoulder and shook her head. “He’s got the best care possible,” Bec said, noticing the tears forming in the teenager’s eyes. “You know your dad wouldn’t want you to see him like this,” Bec added. Baylee sniffed and nodded. Turning to the nurse, she asked, “Can he wait right here? We’re only gonna be a minute.” The nurse smiled kindly and nodded.

Taking Leighanne’s hand, Bec guided her into the semi-dark room. She slowly led her to her husband’s bedside and tucked her hand around his and stepped back. Placing a hand on her shoulder, she said softly, “Brian, Leigh’s here.” She waited for a beat, looking at the screen near his bed showing his heart rate and oxygen saturation levels. She placed a hand on Leighanne’s shoulder. “Go ahead. Talk to him,” she whispered.

Leighanne took a breath. “Hey, Babe,” she whispered. Bec watched the numbers on the screen speed up just a few digits. “I’m here,” Leighanne said. “So’s Bay, but he’s outside. Your brothers are on their way.” Bec continued to watch the numbers on the monitor. They actually dipped back down as Leighanne continued to talk to her husband. 

After a few minutes, Bec could tell that Leighanne was getting choked up. She reached over and grabbed Brian’s hand. “Bri, we're gonna be back in the morning, don’t you worry about it. But we need to get a few hours of sleep and you need your rest.” She felt his finger twitch slightly in her hand. “Now, behave and we’ll see you in a few hours, okay?” His eyelids fluttered and Bec felt Leighanne tense beside her. Placing her arm around Leighanne’s shoulders, she gently led her out of the room.

Once back out in the hallway, she looked at the nurse. “Thank you,” Bec said. “We’re gonna go get a hotel nearby.”

The nurse smiled slightly. “Probably a good idea. I’ll have a social worker stop by tomorrow sometime, see what else you might be needing.”

Bec nodded. “Thank you.” Carefully, she led the two family members out of the ICU and towards the exit.

As they headed outside, Leighanne seemed to find her voice. “Why a social worker?”

Sighing, Bec replied, “There’s likely gonna be parking fees, gas, food, lodging. The social worker is gonna help you navigate all those things. It’s going to be overwhelming.”

“But I’ve always…” Leighanne’s voice caught in her throat.

Stopping, Bec engulfed her in a hug. “I know. You’ve always taken care of everything. But trust me. You’re going to need help here. Accept it. Don’t fight it. You need your energy to go towards your husband. He needs you right now. As much as you’re not going to want to, you need to eat, sleep and take care of yourself. You can’t draw from an empty well.” Leighane tipped her head on Bec’s shoulder and sobbed silently. Bec let her cry for a moment. Then she gently said, “Do you need me to drive you? We need to get a hotel nearby. You’re going to want to go back to your house probably tomorrow to get a few things. We can do that after we check in on him in the morning. And we’ll get the number to the nurse’s station. I’m sure we can call whenever to check on him, okay?” 

Leighanne nodded and pulled herself upright, squaring her shoulders. “I think I can drive. But it needs to be close.”

Bec nodded. “Of course. As close as we can get. We’ll get a few hours sleep and then come back first thing in the morning, okay?”

Leighanne nodded again as they walked outside.


	3. Chapter 3

After only a few hours of sleep, the Littrells plus the woman whose number had been on Brian’s nightstand were back at the hospital. After checking on Brian and getting the phone number to the nurse’s station, Bec showed Leighanne and Baylee where the cafeteria was, and the location of the chapel. She recommended that Leighanne get in touch with their pastor. She then told Leighanne to go home and pack a few things; it was likely going to be a while before Brian was strong enough to be released. Bec promised to stay by Brian’s side while Leighanne and Baylee were gone, and that was what she did. She pulled up one of the chairs beside his bed and held his hand while she waited for Leighanne to return. She was there when his IV pump started beeping and needed to be changed. She quizzed the nurse on the settings of his alarms for his monitor and learned how to quiet them if need be. She picked the brain of the respiratory therapist when he came in to check Brian’s vent settings and adjust them. She decided there were somethings she definitely needed to go over with Leighane when she finally did return.

Around nine-thirty, Leighanne walked back into the room and went directly to Brian’s side. She spoke softly to him and squeezed his hand. Bec glanced at the monitor and saw his heart rate drop slightly. Brian’s nurse for the day, Cheryl, came in and checked his monitor and then nodded at Bec. “That’s the calmest I’ve seen his heart rate,” she said softly to Bec.

“At least you know it wasn’t a fluke.”

Leighanne glanced up at Bec. “Howie’s just gotten here,” she whispered.

Bec tipped her head towards the door, indicating they should leave. Leighanne shot her a worried look. “It’ll be okay. Cheryl’s right here. They will call into the waiting room if they need you, okay?” Leighanne nodded slowly and followed Bec out of the ICU. As the pair walked through the double doors out of the ICU, Bec said to Leighanne, “There’s something else I want you to do. Do not, under any circumstance, talk about his condition in his room. If the doctor wants to talk to you about how he’s doing, do so outside his room, alright?”

“Why?” Leighanne asked as they rounded the corner heading to the waiting room.

“Positivity, remember? The doctors are liable to give you news that he doesn’t need to hear. Remember, he can hear you. You’ve seen that. So take all that news outside his room until he is conscious and coherent enough to handle it.”

Leighanne nodded slowly as she entered the waiting room followed by Bec. Howie was sitting with Baylee. He stood up and hugged Leighanne as she walked in the room. She introduced Bec who simply nodded and asked if he needed anything. Howie shook his head and asked Leighanne if he could see Brian. She agreed and took him out the door.

As Leighanne and Howie left, Bec walked over to Baylee. “Come on. Let’s go get some coffee,” she offered. The teen stood up and followed her to the cafeteria. As they got their box-brewed specialty coffees and Bec paid for them, she led the young man outside onto the patio. “How are you holding up?” she asked.

Baylee sat down on a bench and shrugged. “I don’t know. I want to see my dad, but I know he wouldn’t want me to see him like that.”

Bec placed a hand on his knee. “Trust me. It’s better if you see him getting better and not right now. It’s bad enough you had to see him loaded into an ambulance.”

“How do you know so much?” Baylee asked, sipping his coffee.

“I’ve been around. I’ve seen a lot.”

“You don’t look that old.”

Bec raised an eyebrow. “Thank you, I think.” Baylee shook his head and Bec added, “I’m not as old as your parents, that’s for sure. But I have been around this hospital a whole lot.” The pair sat there in silence drinking their coffees for a bit before Bec stood up. “Come on. Let’s get back before your mom starts to worry.”

Later that afternoon, when the other three members of the group had arrived and were gathered in the small waiting room, Bec decided it was time to address them. Leighanne was in with Brian and Kevin had just gotten there. “Guys,” Bec said, “I don’t know what has been released yet, but one thing you need to keep in mind is what photos you release.” Nick tipped his head at the woman sitting there amongst them. Kevin nodded slowly, obviously understanding, but said nothing. “I wouldn’t advise any photos of Brian until he’s off the vent.”

Howie nodded in agreement. “We don’t want our fans to freak out.”

“Exactly,” Bec said. “And be very careful in wording any releases you do. Don’t give away too much, because frankly, the doctors just don’t know right now.”

AJ leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. He sighed and then asked the question that hung heavy in the room. “Is he gonna be able to sing again?”

Bec took her time to look at each one of them. “I don’t know. No one knows for sure. Yes, he’s on a ventilator. Yes, that can cause damage to the vocal cords. In any normal person, this probably wouldn’t be a reason for concern, but I do understand where you guys are coming from. I will make sure we get an ENT and speech pathologist on board the moment he’s extubated. Hopefully, this won’t be a major setback.” Bec saw the worry in all their faces. “I do know the RT told me yesterday that he was already starting to breathe over his settings, so that’s a good thing. We want him off support as soon as possible. The longer he’s on, the harder it is to come off.” The guys in the room nodded.

Leighanne walked in and smiled a tired smile at Kevin who hugged her tightly. They whispered something and pulled away. As they stood there in the silence of the room, a steady mechanical voice on the loudspeaker broke through. “Code Blue, ICU Room 204.” Everyone in the room froze. Leighanne slowly turned around to head back out of the room, but Bec caught her hand. “You can’t go back right now.”

“But that’s his room!” she cried with tears in her eyes.

“I know,” Bec whispered, pulling her into an embrace for a second. “We can’t do anything right now. Anything but pray.” Leighanne lifted her head and nodded slowly to Bec. Grabbing her hand, she reached for the closest one next to her, which happened to be Howie’s. Without another word, the men in the room, including Baylee, who had been sitting with Nick, formed a tight circle around the women and all bowed their heads. No one said anything for a moment. It was then that Bec realized Brian wasn’t just the spiritual leader at home, but also of the group. She took a moment to compose herself before praying out loud, asking for healing, wisdom for the doctors and nurses, for Brian to stay longer if that was God’s Will.

As they finished, the circle fell in on itself and became a giant hug. No one wanted to let go for fear of what might happen. Everyone stayed there until a nurse entered a little bit later. “Is this Brian’s family?” she asked. Bec was the first to break the circle and nod. “He’s stable now if you’d like to see him.”

There was a collective sigh as Bec stepped away and cornered the nurse. “I know it’s not protocol, but could we have five minutes with everyone in his room?”

The nurse looked at the four men, the teenager, and the blonde woman and nodded. “Five minutes, that’s it.”

“Thank you,” Bec whispered. She turned around to the group and said, “Come on. I’ve got us special access for the next five minutes.” As the four men and Leighanne headed towards the door, Baylee stopped. Bec walked over to him and put her arm around his shoulder. “You too. He’s your dad. And we need to give thanks that he’s still here.” Baylee nodded, wiping the tears from his eyes as he followed the group into the ICU.

They went directly to Brian’s room. It was dark, even though it was the middle of the day. Leighanne went to one side of the bed and grabbed his hand. Bec went to the other side. She looked at the men fanned around his bed. “Everyone place one hand on him and touch the person beside you.” Without a word, everyone did as they were told. Bec again lifted up a prayer, this time of thanksgiving; thankful for him still being on the Earth, thankful for everyone in the room, thankful for the quick actions of the doctors and nurses. As they finished praying and Leighanne led everyone out, Bec stayed. Once the room was clear, she leaned over to Brian. “Okay, mister, you can quit scaring everyone now. Stop the breath holding. Remember to breathe. The sooner you quit forgetting, the sooner you can wake up and annoy everyone again.” She looked over at the monitor and watched as Brian’s heart sped up a moment and his breaths per minute jumped. They then settled right back down into his normal rhythm. Bec squeezed his hand and replied, “I know you heard me and I know you are laughing at me. But seriously. Knock this stuff off. There’s only so much we can do for you. You have to make the choice and frankly, everyone still needs you here so you better make the right one.” She squeezed his hand and felt his index finger twitch. “Glad we had this talk,” she said. “Now rest and no more funny business.” She gave his hand one last squeeze before walking out to find his wife.


	4. Chapter 4

Twenty-four hours after Brian had been brought into the hospital, the news broke of his health crisis. The Backstreet Boys and their publicist had managed to put together a statement that was both respectful and elegant in wording. The media ran with it and most were respectful and didn’t try to add their own embellishments to it. The men in the group spent their time returning emails stating they had “no comment” on Brian’s current condition. Their social media went silent after the announcement. No one felt much like posting hospital photos.

Leighanne was by her husband’s side nearly all day. The family came in to check on her and Baylee, but she kept her bedside vigil nearly constantly for three days. Baylee’s girlfriend flew down to stay with him and the teens were often found huddled in a corner scrolling their phones, reading various articles or posts. Brian’s family flew in from Kentucky. His parents would take over at Brian’s bedside at times, forcing Leighanne to leave and eat.

Slowly, Brian’s vitals grew steady. He was remembering to breathe on his own. His heart was getting stronger. The doctors were amazed at his progress. They had no idea why he had suddenly gone down that evening. His blood work was always right where it should have been. He showed no signs of infection. 

Four days after he had been brought into the emergency room, the respiratory therapist and doctors decided it was time to extubate. An ENT was called in to assist. Brian came off the ventilator and was switched to a nasal cannula. They kept him sedated for another twenty-four hours though to make sure he was going to remember how to breathe on his own. Brian had been in the ICU for almost a week when they weaned the sedatives. Slowly, he began to wake up.

When Brian’s eyes fluttered open one morning, he saw his wife watching him. He smiled weakly at her as tears formed in her eyes. He tried to speak but found he had no voice. “It’s okay, Honey,” Leighanne said softly, reading the desperate look in her husband’s eyes. “They said it might take a day or two for your voice to come back.” Brian nodded slowly and closed his eyes again. Opening them one more time he made eye contact with his wife and mouthed the words, “I love you.” Leighanne replied out loud and ran a hand over his forehead. Brian again closed his eyes and slowly attempted to roll on his side towards his wife.

Brian spent the next few days drifting in and out of sleep. When he was awake, they offered him clear liquids to hopefully get his gut moving again. He worked with a speech pathologist to get his voice back. He was encouraged to get up and move. All this was with the promise that he would be moved to a private room out of ICU and eventually get to go home.

His family and friends came and went from his room. Baylee felt comfortable visiting his father, now that he was at least awake and attempting to move. The wires still made the teenager nervous. He sat in the chair about a foot away from his father’s bed and attempted to hold down a conversation, but his eyes kept drifting to the wires, IV lines, and other things still attached to his dad.

Brian’s voice was still hoarse and came and went from time to time. It frustrated him to no end. When Kevin was in the room with him two days after he had come off the vent, his voice was shaky. His cousin could see how hard he was being on himself. “Bri, listen to me for a moment,” Kevin said, placing and hand on top of the younger man’s hand. “You were on a ventilator for nearly a week. It went straight through your vocal cords. They say you’re lucky you don’t have any permanent damage. So go easy on yourself.”

Brian shook his head slowly. “I can’t,” he croaked. “They need me.”

“Cuz, you need to rest.”

Brian grumbled and slid down on the bed. As he did so, the plastic tubing slid out of his nose. He tipped his head back and tried to breathe normally, but it came out in gasps. This caused his monitor to beep and his nurse, Chris to poke his head in. Before Chris could say anything, Brian slid the tubing back into place and gave Chris a lopsided grin.

Sliding the door closed behind him, Chris said to Kevin, “Is he trying to do too much again?”

Kevin smiled at the nurse. “As always.”

Chris walked over and without a word, laid his fingers on Brian’s wrist. Brian rolled his eyes and stared at the ceiling. When Chris was done counting, he looked down at his patient. “You are the most stubborn one I’ve got. If you would rest and quit doing too much too soon, you’d be out of here sooner.”

“Yeah, right,” Brian breathed.

Kevin looked over at the nurse. “He’s always been stubborn. I don’t think he knows how to take a break.”

Chris patted Brian’s leg before turning away. “Well, he’d better learn.”

It took Brian another week to get to the point they could move him to a private room out of ICU. He still needed oxygen after he walked with his physical therapist and sometimes after he worked with his speech therapist, but when he was resting, they decided he didn’t need it on. He had progressed to soft foods and his body was slowly starting to come back to life. His awake periods were becoming longer than his sleeping periods, though he still napped in the afternoon and spent most of the night awake.

The morning they decided to move him to the med-surge floor, due to his oxygen requirements, Brian was overjoyed to be rid of an IV line. He’d had one in each arm and as much as he had pestered Chris and Diane, his two favorite nurses, they refused to pull them for him and told him they’d just have to put them back if he did it himself. “It’s for access,” Chris had told him one day. “If you crash again, the lines are already there. I know flushing them is annoying, but it’s required.”

Diane walked in that morning, while Leighanne was gathering things. They had anticipated this move and had been slowly taking flowers and cards back to the house. In her hand, she carried a sealed gauze pad and on her first two fingers, she had a roll of medical tape. “Who’s ready to get an IV out?” she asked. Brian grinned and held out both arms to her. He had one in his forearm of his left arm and one in the back of his right hand. “Do you have a preference?” she asked.

Looking down at the two ports in his arms, he said, “Left. It’ll make it easier to get food to my mouth.”

Diane smiled as she pulled a pair of gloves out of a box on the wall. “Well, that one kept occluding too when we had you hooked up. You couldn’t keep it still.”

“Well, you could be nice and take them both out.”

Diane smiled again as she started to remove the tape holding the IV in. “Can’t do that, Hon. They need you to have one until you’re discharged. Now if it blows, we’ll move it.”

Brian winced at the pain of the tape peeling his skin. “Eh, probably another day or so before it does that. I’m used to being a pin cushion.” He grinned at her, as she pulled the line out of his left forearm. “By the time I leave, they’re gonna think you guys beat me up.”

Diane smiled. “We try,” she laughed as she taped the gauze over where the IV used to be. “Okay, you are now free of one IV. I’ll call down to med-surge and see if they have your room available.”

As Diane left, Leighanne sat down on the bed next to her husband. “I’m so glad to be moving out of this unit,” she said, laying her head on his shoulder.

Brian cleared his throat and added, “Me too.” After a moment, he asked, “What happened to Bec?”

Leighanne picked her head up and looked at her husband. “Who?”

“Bec. She was here the first few days I was here.”

Leighanne shook her head. “There’s been no one here with that name, Bri.”

Brian stared at his wife. “I swear. I heard her voice. You called her.”

Leighanne grabbed Brian’s hand. “No, Honey, I didn’t. The only people who have been to see you other than your doctors and nurses are your family and the guys. There has been no one named Bec come to visit you.”


	5. Chapter 5

As Brian settled into his new private room, he looked around and tried to gauge how things were going. His goals on the board were to require less oxygen support and to eat and drink. Those things would put him on the path to discharge. The doctors still didn’t know what had happened to cause him to lose consciousness and for his heart to stop beating twice. They decided it was a mystery but were glad he was on his way to making a full recovery.

Over the next day, he worked with his PT and found he could walk farther if he took it slower and actually didn’t push himself too hard. His speech therapist was impressed with his voice and told him that he may never lose the rasp to his voice now. His nurse promised him that as long as he continued to have good fluid intake, she’d take his IV out.

When the guys came in to check on him that afternoon, he once again asked about Bec. They all looked at him like he was crazy. Kevin told him that when he got there, it was just the other guys and Leighanne and Baylee, no one else. Howie even said that he was the first to get there and it was just his wife and son.

A second press release had been posted, stating that Brian was on the mend. Brian even decided to post a video to his Instagram that first night in his hospital room. It was short, heartfelt and grateful. He was grateful to the doctors, the fans, his family and everyone out there who had prayed for him. As the video uploaded he thought about the woman he swore was near him while he was in the ICU. He could see her phone number on the napkin. As the video finished uploading, he switched to his phone and without really thinking about it, dialed the familiar number. It went straight to voicemail. “Hey, this is Bec. Can’t answer the phone. Leave a message.” It was the voice he recognized. So she was real and wasn’t a figment of his imagination. He didn’t leave a message. He just hung up.

Brian knew he had heard her voice. He knew she had been by his bedside. The next morning, when his nurse Karen came by to take his vitals, he asked her. She stared at him for a minute before answering blankly, “There’s no one here by that name.”

Later that morning, with Leighanne and Baylee sitting in the room, the discharge coordinator came by and they started making plans for Brian to finally go home. He was beyond ready. The hanging out and doing nothing was driving him insane. Kevin had come by shortly after and reminded him that even when he got home he had to take it easy. He would have to ease himself back into the life he had known and only with doctor approval. Brian smiled and shook his head at his cousin. “You’re not twenty anymore, Bri,” Kevin told him. “And remember how you were at that first show back. It was crazy. We don’t want that.” Brian sighed and nodded. It was shortly after that that he kicked everyone out of his room because he said he wanted to rest. He really didn’t. He just wanted to be alone.

When lunch came, he kinda picked at it. He wasn’t really hungry. As he was rolling over to stare out the window on the wall, he heard a knock on the door. Picking his head up, he looked at who it was. He sat up at the sight of Chris, his nurse from ICU. “Hey Stubborn,” Chris said. “Are you giving Karen and the girls a hard time down here?”

Brian grinned. “Not as hard as I gave you.”

Chris grinned back. “That’s only because they promised to let you go.”

Brian shrugged. “What are you doing here?”

Sighing, Chris said, “Come on. Let’s go for a walk.” It was only then that Brian realized that Chris had a wheelchair in front of him. “I know you’ve been granted outside privileges.” The nurse watched as Brian turned his body and did exactly as his PT had instructed about putting both feet on the ground and pushing up from the bed. He steadied himself before walking the three steps to the chair and sitting down. Chris grabbed the blanket off the end and folded it before throwing it over Brian’s lap. Chris didn’t say anything as he pushed Brian down the hall. He waved at Karen and turned a corner. After leaving the unit, he turned another corner and the doors to outside opened. They were in a garden at the back of the hospital. Chris pushed the chair over to a bench and parked it before sitting down beside Brian. “I hear you have been asking about Bec,” Chris stated softly.

Brian took a breath of the air before answering. “Yeah. No one seems to know who she is, yet I swear she was by my bedside in the ICU.”

Chris sighed again and started talking softly. “See, Bec’s what we call family liaison. About a year and a half ago, we all decided that something was missing. Our pediatric nurses were doing an awesome job about helping families acclimate to hospital life. But we realized that we weren’t extending the same service to our adult families. We figured it was because the adults could tell us more. Tell us about their pain, their fears, all of that. But kids couldn’t do that, so we tended to help those families more. And a year and a half ago, we decided to do better about that with our adult ICU patients too. That was when we hired Bec.” Brian nodded, following Chris’s story. “She’s not a social worker, but she knows the ins and outs of the hospital.”

“So she did help my family?” Brian asked.

Chris closed his eyes and bowed his head. “Bec and I were engaged to be married. We have a scanner at our apartment. She was listening to the scanner when your call came in. Without a second thought, she kissed me goodbye and jumped in her car to head to the hospital.” Chris paused. Brian could tell that whatever he was going to say wasn’t going to be good. “She was hit head-on by a drunk driver. By what I can gather from the ER nurses, her code was the first one your wife heard that night. Yours was immediately after. They were able to save you,” Chris whispered.

Brian froze. He let the silence linger for a minute before whispering, “I’m so sorry.”

Chris shook his head. “There was nothing they could’ve done. She had coded on the way in. They said she was already brain dead.” The male nurse sniffed and looked up at the sky.

“So then why do I have these memories? Why do I know her number and can see it on a napkin?”

Chris shrugged. “I don’t know. I know that the napkin is something she would do. She was forever leaving me notes on them in Sharpie.”

“She prayed over me,” Brian whispered, a chill running through his body.

“Something else she did constantly. When there was nothing else to do, she prayed. She felt it helped the families and the patient.”

“How are you even able to go to work every day now?” Brian asked.

Chris looked over at the man in the wheelchair. “You.”

Brian tipped his head. “Me?”

“Yes, you,” Chris replied. “She would’ve hated me if I hadn’t been your nurse. They were gonna give me bereavement time, but when I told my supervisor why she had left that night, they agreed to let me work the days you were in the unit. After today, I’m taking a week. Just to get things together.”

Brian nodded. “I still don’t understand why I know about her.”

Chris smiled and stood up. “Because she wanted you to. Come on, let’s get you back inside before Karen freaks out on me.”

Over the next two days, Brian did everything he was supposed to and was finally able to go home. He was to take it easy, not do anything strenuous, check in with his doctors in a few days. As his wife helped him to his bed upstairs, he stopped and looked at what was on his nightstand. His Bible, a couple of receipts and a napkin. He stared at it. There was nothing written on it, but he smiled as he rolled over on his side and stared at it anyway.


End file.
